Women are better at remembering faces than men, according to a new study, partly because they spend more time studying facial features without being aware of it.

Canadian researchers used eye-tracking technology to monitor where study participants looked — such as the eyes, nose or mouth — when they were shown a series of different faces on a computer screen. Each face was given a name that the researchers asked participants to remember.

“We discovered that women look more at new faces than men do, which allows them to create a richer and more superior memory,” study co-author Jennifer Heisz, an assistant professor in the kinesiology department at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, said in a university news release.

Women’s heightened attention to facial features occurs on a subconscious level, according to the study, which was published May 21 in the journal Psychological Science.